George crouch



(No Mode1.)

G. GROUGH.

FRAMEl POR HAND BAGS,i

Patented Aug. '7

UNITED STATES GEORGE cROUcH, OE NEW YORK, N. Y.

FRAME FOR HAND-BAGS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 282,850, dated August '7, 1883.

Application filed December D, 1882.

T all whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE GROUCH, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and, useful Improvement in the Frames of Hand-Bags, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a transverse section of the frame, taken on the lfine as x in Fig. 2, which is a top view of the frame when open, and Fig. 3, which is a section of the frame when closed,` taken at the same point as Fig. l.

The object of my invention is to obtain a more simple and certain catch or stop upon the frame of a hand-bag, so that the mouth of the bag may be kept Open as desired.

The nature of my invention Aconsists Yin the employment of two catches, one operated' by a spring attached to the frame in such manner that when it is opened they will engage with each other and hold the frame open until releasedby such amanual operation of the spring as well as disengage them.

, As is well known, the ordinary hand-bag is constructed upon a frame, which,when opened, presents the general outline of a parallelogram, and is hinged in the centers of the two shorter sides. When covered by the bag proper, the tendency of the frame is to close or double on its hinges, and it is desirable many times to have it remain open until packed or unpacked. 'Io accomplish this I have constructed, as shown in the drawings, a frame (indicated as A) with hinges B B, so that it may be opened, as shown in Figs. l and 2, and closed, as shown in Fig. 3. At the point on the under side of the frame shown at f, I attach an ordinary. ilat spring, k, which extends toward the hinge B. At iis free end I attach the catch d, which consists of atlat piece of metal with a rounded end, from which a short inclined surface, upward or inward, terminates in a square shoulder. To the upper side of this catch d, I attach a shank, extending upward or inward through the frame and terminating on the button c. On the opposite side of the hinge,

(No model.)

at a point on the frame shown at g, .I attach another catch, e, similar in shape to the catch d, but with the inclined surface and shoulder in a reverse position to those on catch 5o d. These catches are so arranged that when, the frame is opened they each pass the center of the hinge B sufciently to permit the shoulders to pass each other and engage. This results necessarily from the fact that as attached to the frame on either side of the hinge B, as the frame is opened, the catch e must describe the arc indicated by the arrow in Fig. 3, and its point strike the inclined surface on the catch d, forcing it and the spring k outward, 6o and sliding along said inclined surface until the frame is fully opened, when the shoulders ofthe catches will just pass each other, and the spring k forces them to engage and lock. The frame cannot be closed while they so re- 65 main.

When it is desired to close the frame,by pushing the button c downward the spring-catch d will be pushed downward and forced to disengage from catch e, when, as the frame is closed, 7o the catches will have an action the reverse of that described'. It will be apparent that the position of these catches might be changed by reversing them or placing them on the sides 4or above the frame instead of beneath without affecting the principle of my invention, and that the means of depressingthespring-catch d might, and in some cases must, be changed, it being only necessary when the spring is so placed as to be out of reach.

`What I claim to be new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a bag-frame, a spring,` k, combined with catches d and c, arranged and operating substantially as described.

2. In a bag-frame, a spring, k, and catch d, provided with a shank and button, c, arranged and operating substantially asdescribed.

GEO. CROUCH.

Vitnesses:

JAMES DEMAREs'r, WILLIAM A. BARR. 

